Porn star Stormy Daniels, who is central to the hush money case resulting in Donald Trump's recent conviction, still owes the former president more than $500,000 in legal fees. This debt is from a defamation case Daniels brought against Trump in 2018. After losing the case, she was ordered to repay Trump's attorney's fees.
The lawsuit came after Daniels released a sketch of a man she claimed threatened her to stay silent about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump. Trump dismissed the sketch as a "con job" on X, formerly known as Twitter. A judge dismissed Daniels' case, stating that Trump's tweet was "rhetorical hyperbole" protected by the First Amendment.
During the hush money trial, Daniels testified that her former lawyer, Michael Avenatti, who is now in prison for embezzlement and other crimes, encouraged her to file the lawsuit. Trump has sued Daniels in Florida to recover the money, but she testified that she still hasn't paid.
Daniels confirmed to Trump’s lawyer, Susan Necheles, that she owes Trump $560,000 in legal fees, acknowledging that this amount is likely before interest. Her lawyer, Clark Brewster, mentioned that the debt could be around $600,000 to $620,000 due to growing interest.
During cross-examination, Daniels remarked that although Trump "prevailed," she was "not found to have lost." Brewster told USA TODAY that they plan to contest paying Trump the money in the ongoing Florida case, stating, "We'll defend on whatever grounds are available to us there."
A jury in Manhattan found Donald Trump guilty on all 34 counts of felony charges for falsifying business records in his New York hush money criminal trial. The sentencing is scheduled for July 11.
